Life on the Other Side
by Maenad
Summary: Draco finds out what Muggles are really like...
1. Default Chapter Title

Life on the Other Side  
  
By Maenad.  
  
Disclaimer: This lot belongs to JK, except for the ones I made up. They're mine.  
  
Ok guys, here's the deal. I had this idea - Draco knows nothing about Muggles except for what his Dad's told him. What if he were forced to see what they were really like? Would his opinions change? I think this is going to be a D/H something eventually, but I can't quite make up my mind whether it should be romance or just friendship. This section's a G rating, but it'll get to at least a PG-13 eventually. Should I keep going with this? Readers and reviewers, it's over to you.  
  
LIFE ON THE OTHER SIDE  
  
The seventh-year students at Hogwarts had been called into the Great Hall. This was something they had anticipated and speculated about all through the autumn term, for a special project was part of the curriculum in the last year at Hogwarts. Participation was compulsory, for no student graduated without a pass in the project. It was these projects that gave Hogwarts its world-wide reputation for excellence - its students were widely acknowledged to be the most well-rounded products of wizarding education.  
  
The Gryffindor students sat at their table, waiting for Dumbledore and the Heads of Houses to enter. Hermione was, as usual, frantically worrying about what it would be, and praying fervently that it wasn't one subject in particular...  
  
"I couldn't bear it if it was Divination! Just think how awful it would be, spending an entire week making fraudulent predictions and gazing misty-eyed into crystal balls! I'd be so bored I'd quit on the first day and fail totally!"  
  
"What if it were Potions?" cried Neville. "Having Snape breathe down my neck for a week would be terrifying!"  
  
Ron was muttering under his breath about Transfiguration, something he'd never really got a grip on and had dropped immediately after scraping through his O.W.L. in the subject. Harry sat silent, tacitly agreeing with Hermione and Neville, and trying to fight down the butterflies in his stomach.  
  
The other tables were also talking and murmuring among themselves, and the air of tension was so thick you could breathe it, except for one small area over the Slytherin table, where Draco Malfoy sat oozing confidence and superiority. When Dumbledore and the other teachers walked into the Hall, an expectant hush descended immediately over the whole company. The teachers sat down, except for Dumbledore, who looked around, smiled, and began to speak.  
  
"As you are all aware, this school prides itself on producing wizards capable of dealing with every magical situation. Alumni from this school can be found in every country, in every wizarding career, and succeed well. In order to keep up with this tradition, we provide a wide range of subjects to be taken at N.E.W.T. level, and usually the talent in every year is spread more or less evenly across the whole curriculum.  
  
'This year, however, this is not so. All of the staff here feel that one subject has been unfairly neglected by your year group, only two students having chosen it for one of their N.E.W.T.'s, and this year's project has been designed in order to remedy this situation.  
  
'I will not leave you in suspense any longer. This year we are sending you all on a Muggle Survival Course, in order to familiarize yourselves with our fellow human beings in the non-wizarding world."  
  
Grumbles and complaints exploded from the Slytherin table, and Malfoy looked furious. Harry and Hermione relaxed and sighed a breath of relief, for their upbringing meant that they could hardly fail. Dumbledore continued.  
  
"We have noticed that students with Muggle or half-Muggle parents are outnumbered five-to-one by those who come from all-wizard families. Therefore we have written to the families of these students, who have all agreed to care for five of you for a week. While you are staying at their homes, you will not be allowed to use any form of magic at all. Your wands will remain at Hogwarts. At the end of the week, each group will be sent a Portkey to return to Hogwarts, where you will write a five foot essay on what you have learned.  
  
'Professor McGonagall will now tell you which groups you will be in. Please then meet the other members of your groups, and listen to the Muggle-born among you, who will tell you what you need to know about their homes and families."  
  
Professor Dumbledore sat down, whereupon Professor McGonagall stood up and started allocating students to their teams. To Harry's relief, he was assigned to Seamus Finnigan's team, instead of having to take a bundle of wizards to the Dursley's. Hermione, though, wasn't so lucky. She was assigned Ron, Two girls from Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw - and Draco Malfoy.  
  
Draco came stalking up to the Gryffindor table, his face red with anger. "Of all the Mudbloods I could have been assigned to it had to be you, Granger. There are a few of your kind in Slytherin, why couldn't it have been one of them?"  
  
"First rule, Malfoy, is never to use that term when we are on assignment," she replied. "You won't have Crabbe, Goyle or your wand to help you - and I've got four older brothers who could easily beat the hell out of you." She smiled sweetly and gestured for him to take a seat across the table from herself and Ron. He scowled and sat down.  
  
The girls from Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw introduced themselves. Sophie Finchett was a mousey-haired, bespectacled Hufflepuff who was one of the students who had taken Muggle Studies, and looked like she wouldn't say boo to a goose. She sat as far away from Draco as she could, looking nervously at him. He however, was looking interestedly at Maria Delaney, who was a tall, glamorous blonde from Ravenclaw and specialized in Herbology.   
  
"So, what's it like being a Muggle?" Sophie asked Hermione, who laughed.  
  
"Pretty much like being a wizard, except you can't do magic. Muggles come up with other ways of doing things to get what they want. Most of them will seem pretty weird to you until you learn to think logically. After that it's pretty simple. But Muggles are just the same as wizards apart from that - all different types, not just one lump of humanity as Malfoy thinks."  
  
"Ridiculous. My father says that all Muggles are stupid and perverted. Common types, not fit to exist," said Draco, looking disgusted."Well, you'll have a chance to find out for yourself, Malfoy, but if you call my family that again I can make life very bad for you when you're at my home, so watch it!" Hermione snapped.  
  
"Will we learn how to use fellytones properly?" asked Ron. "I remember I once tried to call Harry at his uncle's house but I couldn't get the hang of it and his uncle got very annoyed."  
  
"Sure Ron. Now, my parents are both dentists - that means they make sure people's teeth are kept healthy - so they'll be at work for most of the time. Two of my brothers are at Muggle university, so you may not see them, but the other two live in London, which is not far from where I live, so you might get to meet them. I have two dogs, Taco and Nacho - anyone allergic to pet hair?"  
  
They all shook their heads.  
  
"Ok, what about clothes? You can't wear robes, people will look at you like you're mad. Do you have jeans, trousers, that sort of thing?"  
  
"I can pass for a Muggle if I have to," growled Draco. The others all assented.  
  
At this point Professor McGonagall rapped the table for attention.   
  
"I hope you have by now sorted out all the basic details. Portkeys to each home will be given to you at 9:00 tomorrow morning after breakfast. They will take you to your assignments at 9:15 precisely, where your hosts will be expecting you. While you are there, I expect you to behave with the utmost decorum and respect for your hosts, who will be in loco parentis while you are with them. Until tomorrow, you are all dismissed." 


	2. Introducing the Grangers

Life on the Other Side 2  
  
By Maenad  
  
Disclaimer - These are the wonderful creations of JK, except for the wonderful creations that are mine!  
  
Thanks for the reviews guys, they are all really encouraging. Sorry about the format problems - I had difficulty changing it from Word to a txt format. I'm sticking with the D/H, but for all you Ron fans out there I'll try and let him get a little action too. Please keep reviewing!  
  
  
LIFE ON THE OTHER SIDE 2  
  
"Are you going to be alright with this Hermione?"asked Ron as they walked towards the Great Hall for breakfast, wearing Muggle clothes and carrying suitcases. "Draco's going to make life hell for us, and your parents are really nice - I don't want them to have to put up with his nastiness."  
  
"Don't worry Ron," she replied. "They're used to dealing with stroppy adolescents. One of my brothers - well, if he'd gone to Hogwarts as well, he'd definitely be a Slytherin, he was always getting into trouble and thinking himself superior than the rest of us. I'm clever, I admit, but he's a genius. Besides, none of us are going to have our wands, so Malfoy'll be at a disadvantage. Muggle life is so different to wizarding life that if he doesn't lose some of his attitude he will be at a complete loss, totally incapable of looking after himself. I can handle him, Ron, you'll see."  
  
"Alright, Herm, I trust you - but I'm still going to worry."  
  
"Don't worry too hard then. But I've got some things to tell you as well - I'm very different at home than I am at Hogwarts. You and Harry gave me a taste for rule-breaking, and when I get home - I guess I'm a little more relaxed about things."  
  
Ron looked at Hermione in shock.  
  
"It's OK Ron, I don't sleep around and do drugs. It's just a little bit of disobedience now and then. All I'm saying is, don't look too surprised at anything I say or do. I have a sort of double life, you see..."  
  
They walked into the Great Hall and sat down to breakfast. The news that Hermione and Draco had been teamed up for their assignment had run quickly round the school, and the Gryffindors were wishing her luck and commiserating at her bad fortune. The Slytherins were jeering and sniggering at Draco, who was trying to ignore them. When the morning post came, Draco's owl landed at his table carrying a red envelope that was smoking at the edges. Looking resigned, he opened it.  
  
"HOW DARE YOU ASK ME TO GET YOU OUT OF THIS ASSIGNMENT DRACO! YOU MUST LEARN TO DEAL WITH THESE PROBLEMS AS THEY COME ALONG - YOU CAN'T BE ALWAYS RELYING ON YOUR FATHER TO GET YOU OUT OF THEM! REMEMBER THAT YOU ARE A MALFOY AND START ACTING WITH THE HONOUR AND DIGNITY THAT IS YOUR INHERITANCE! YOU WILL TAKE THIS ASSIGNMENT OR YOU WILL NOT GRADUATE FROM HOGWARTS AND IF YOU DO NOT THEN YOU WILL NO LONGER BE A SON OF MINE! YOU MUST DO THIS DISTASTEFUL THING AND LEARN OBEDIENCE WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT!"  
  
The Howler shivelled up and disintegrated into ashes. Draco's face was a bright red, and all the House tables had burst into laughter.  
  
"That'll serve him right!" said Harry. "If darling Daddy insists on his son mingling with Muggles there's no way Malfoy will get out of it!"  
  
"That's the first Howler he's ever got, isn't it?" said Ron. "Poor dear, thinking himself Daddy's golden boy only to find himself publicly humiliated by him!"  
  
Hermione laughed, and turned to look at Draco, who looked as though he was trying to hide. Their eyes met, and Hermione shrugged and raised her hands in the air in a gesture of helplessness. Draco looked away.  
  
After breakfast, the groups collected their Portkeys from Professor McGonagall and hand in their wands. Ron was still trying to swallow his laughter every time he looked at Draco, and Sophie was biting her lip trying not to smile. Draco was still slightly embarrassed at first, but when 9:14 came around and Ron and Sophie showed no signs of letting up, he began to get angry.  
  
"I really don't see what's so funny, Weasley," he snapped.  
  
"The look on your face..." began Ron, only to dissolve into another fit of laughter.  
  
"I'd rather have this look than look like you, Weasley. At least I'm not a..."  
  
At this moment the Portkeys activated. The Great Hall dissolved in front of their eyes, and new surroundings began to appear.  
  
"...rabid Muggle-lover like the rest of you!" Draco finished, and looked around to find himself in a small room, with armchairs, a carpet, curtains and pictures on the wall, and face to face with Hermione's parents.  
  
Mr Granger was a tall, thin man with mousey brown hair and glasses. Mrs Granger had blonde frizzy hair and was slightly plump. They both had impeccable smiles on their faces, which had dimmed somewhat on hearing Draco's words. They rallied themselves well, however, and reached forward to hug Hermione hard.  
  
"Are you alright dear? That method of transport is a bit surprising. We knew you would be here today at this time but we didn't expect you to arrive in this fashion," said Mr Granger.  
  
"Don't worry Dad, it's perfectly safe," she replied. "That's the only bit of magic you'll be seeing while we're here, until we leave. Are you both well?" she continued, turning to her mother.  
  
"We're all fine dear. Now, why don't you introduce us to your friends? Ah, Ron, isn't it? Are you well?"  
  
"Fine thanks, Mrs Granger," he replied, and stepped forward to shake their hands.  
  
"Marian, dear, call me Marian."  
  
"And I'm Hugh. Pleased to meet you again Ron."  
  
"Mum, this is Maria Delaney from Ravenclaw, and Sophie Finchett from Hufflepuff," said Hermione, gesturing to the girls in question. The Grangers shook their hands, and Mrs Granger kissed them both on the cheek. "And this is Draco Malfoy from Slytherin," she continued, gesturing to Draco.  
  
"Ah, yes. Well, pleased to meet you Draco," said Mr Granger, extending his hand. Draco shook it, then stepped forward and kissed Mrs Granger's hand.  
  
"Thank you very much for allowing us to spend some time in your charming home," he said, smiling politely at them.  
  
"Mi casa es su casa," said Mr Granger, extending his arms to include the whole party. "Now Hermione, why don't you show everyone where they're staying? We can put the two young men in George's old room, and the two girls in Richard's room. You've had breakfast I assume? Well then, take as long as you want to get settled in."  
  
The party thanked the Grangers once more, then Hermione led them upstairs to the bedrooms.  
  
"You guys are in this room on the right, the girls are in the room on the left. My room is next to the girls' room, and the bathroom is at the end of the corridor. Shall we all sort our stuff out?"  
  
Hermione was busy unpacking her suitcase when she heard a knock on the door.   
  
"Come in!" she said. It was Draco, who entered, shut the door behind him, looked around and sat on a chair by her desk.  
  
"You have a very pleasant room," he said, not looking at her.  
  
"Not as large as yours, I'm sure," she replied snappily.  
  
"No, but... it feels more comfortable," he said. Hermione's room was small, true, but it was decorated in a dark red colour, with old books and oak furniture, and adorned with plants and posters of old paintings. Draco was quiet for a few seconds and then said "I want to apologise for my bad behaviour earlier. Your parents were very gracious."  
  
"An apology from Draco Malfoy?" said Hermione, looking at him astonished. "Not an everyday event."  
  
"Such courtesy from people when I've insulted them, even inadvertently, is not an everyday event where I come from," he replied. "Is it then really so strange if I act out of character?"  
  
"I suppose not. But Draco, it isn't really me you should apologise to," she said.  
  
"I'll apologise to your parents later, when I've improved their opinion of me a little. Look, after I sent an owl to my father last night, I did a little thinking. I didn't really want to come, and I thought it would be worth trying to get out of it through my father's influence, but I didn't really think it would work. I wasn't expecting that Howler this morning, though."  
  
"No, I can imagine not."  
  
"So I decided that a week of tolerance towards Muggles wouldn't be so hard - it would only be for a week after all - and it was something I would need to do in order to graduate. But your parents were very different to anything I expected, and now - I need to do some thinking. The things I've seen and the things I've heard... so far, they don't seem to add up."  
  
"Well, i'ts a start, I suppose, but you may change your opinion once you discover what Muggles have to do for work and housekeeping when they don't have magic!"  
  
Draco grinned. "Probably!" he said. "I don't see how their lives can work, and you don't really expect me to have a change of heart overnight, do you?" He got up and stretched lazily.  
  
"No I don't!" laughed Hermione. "But I've got to finish unpacking now, and I expect my parents are going to work soon and we'll need some money, so I'll talk to everyone later."  
  
"OK," said Draco, who smiled at her and left.  
  
When the door closed behind him, Hermione sat down on her bed and thought. This was a change indeed! Malfoy actually being nice? And... She thought over their conversation. Had she actually called him Draco? It was all very strange. She didn't trust him at all, yet he'd laid on the charm for her parents, who seemed to have instantly forgotten his rather insulting faux pas. Was he trying to charm her as well? Probably. She decided to keep an eye on him.   
  



	3. Going to the Supermarket

Life on the Other Side 3  
  
By Maenad  
  
Disclaimer: Not mine. JK's.  
  
Rating: PG-13   
  
Ok guy's sorry about the wait, but I was ill and had a little case of writer's block. I think I've just about recovered now, so here we go...  
  
LIFE ON THE OTHER SIDE 3  
  
Draco closed Hermione's door behind him, feeling a little confused. His actions were not at all like him, but he'd been almost ashamed by the Granger's friendly treatment of him, and the courtesy that his father had drummed into him had automatically responded. Yet... they were Muggles, people whom he'd been taught to despise all his life. And the way that Hermione had talked to him just now had completely put him off his stride. After nearly seven years at Hogwarts he was used to receiving nothing but insults from the Gryffindors and giving them in return. The resulting bad feeling was something that he ignored. But talking to them courteously produced feelings that were strange, alien to him, but were so much more pleasant than any other feelings that he'd ever felt before...  
  
That was the trap, he decided. His father could not have been so wrong about Muggles as all this seemed to suggest. It was all a ploy to trap wizards into feeling sympathy for them. He would be on his guard.  
  
Hermione, having unpacked, was talking to her parents in the front room while waiting for Malfoy and her friends to come down. Her dogs had come in from the garden, and Taco, a golden retreiver, was laying down by the fire and Nacho, a little Yorkie, was curled up next to her on the sofa.  
  
"We want to give you enough money to let you all have a good time, but it's going to eat into our holiday funds for this year, so we trust you to keep them from using it foolishly. Here's one hundred pounds each for the whole week. Are you all right with this dear?" said Mr. Granger.  
  
"Yes, Dad, that will help enormously, but are you sure? It really is quite a lot," replied Hermione nervously.  
  
"Don't worry love," said Mrs. Granger. "We know it's a lot, but you'll be wanting to go into London and things aren't cheap there are they? And I suppose you'll be showing them a night on the town on Friday?"  
  
"That was my plan, but I was only going to go into town..."  
  
"Nonsense, dear, show them a good time, otherwise they'll think that our life is dull and we can't have that, can we?"  
  
"Can't have what?" said Ron, who had just come in with Draco, Sophie and Maria.  
  
"Can't have you being bored, Ron," said Mr. Granger. "Hermione's got funds for you all and we expect her to show off "Muggle" life to it's full extent."  
  
"Oh I can't wait!" exclaimed Maria enthusiastically.  
  
"Well, we've got to go to work now, but we'll be back at six. Is there anything special you would like for dinner?" said Mrs. Granger.  
  
"I was going to introduce them to the supermarket and show them how we cook, so we'll make dinner for you tonight as a thank you, Mum," replied Hermione.  
  
"Thank you dear, it'll be great not to have to cook for a change. Now goodbye everyone!"  
  
Mr. and Mrs. Granger left, and Draco turned to Hermione with a sneer on his face.  
  
"Cooking, Granger?"  
  
"No house-elves here, you know. We have to get our hands dirty and do it ourselves. Don't worry, I'll let you wear the yellow rubber gloves if you like," smiled Hermione. Draco grimaced and turned away.  
  
They had to take a bus to get to the supermarket, as Hermione hadn't yet learned to drive "I'm not good at practical things - that's why I'm not very good on a broomstick" and the experience was uncomfortable for all of them. They offered the driver a twenty-pound note each and were very uncomfortable with the nasty look he gave them. Maria studied the coins she'd received as change extremely intently and got a funny look from an elderly lady nearby when she asked, too loudly, "Why don't the heads move?" Hermione shushed them all up at that point.  
  
"Sorry about that, people," she said when they got off the bus, "but you've got to be very careful what you say and do. Probably the best advice I can give you is not to be astonished at anything you see and let me do the talking. You might even want to pretend you're foreign for a bit until you get the hang of things."  
  
They all grumbled a bit at this, but they saw the sense of it.  
  
The supermarket was not too busy, but there were still quite a few peoplearound, mainly old-age pensioners and mothers with screaming kids. Draco turned up his nose a little when he saw a rather disreputable-looking man with smelly clothes come in after them. Hermione got five baskets and gave one each to Ron, Sophie, Draco and Maria, keeping one for herself.  
  
"I'm going to make spaghetti bolognese for dinner tonight, and we need something for lunch, so we're all going to split up and get something each. Ron, can you get three pounds of mince and some mushrooms, Sophie, can you find some red wine, preferably not too expensive, and some spaghetti. Maria, try to find three boxes of ready-prepared cauliflower cheese, Malfoy, three cans of tomatoes and two tubes of tomato puree. I'm going to get something nice for dessert."  
  
They all went off and roamed the supermarket in search of their designated ingredients. Ron found the vegetable section easily and filled a plastic bag with mushrooms right to the brim. He then went off to find the mince, but when he found it in the meat section, stood scratching his head at the amounts, which were all in kilos, and finally had to ask an old lady for help.  
  
Sophie strolled through the supermarket, looking lost, until a friendly-looking shop assistant directed her to the wine section, which was right at the back of the store. She gazed confusedly at the variety of wines to choose from, and noticing that the French section was largest, picked up a couple of smart-looking bottles which were marked at four pounds each.  
  
Maria found the ready-prepared section easily enough, but the cauliflower cheese had run out, so she picked up three boxes of something called "chicken korma". She went and found Hermione, who said that that was fine.  
  
Draco strolled around the store, looking for canned tomatoes. A rather frazzled middle-aged woman bumped into him accidentally, jerked her head up to look at him and said "Oh I am so sorry, my mind was elsewhere."  
  
"Oh, are you telepathic?" he responded, looking a little confused.  
  
"God, no, but I wish I were, then I would have known that my no-good husband had been cheating on me for five years!" She gave a short, bitter bark of laughter, then dissolved into tears.   
  
Draco felt extremely uncomfortable, standing over this distraught woman, who was clinging onto his shoulder for support. "There, there," he said, vaguely remembering something his mother had said to him once when he was very little.  
  
"And I only found out yesterday!" she bawled. "Men - they just take everything and leave you with nothing! And I thought he loved me! He was always so caring, making feel wanted, when all the while he was carrying on with some two-bit slut!" The woman's voice was getting louder and louder, and Draco realised that they were attracting some attention.  
  
"Do you want to sit down somewhere?" he said awkwardly.  
  
"Yes, I think so," she said, gazing up at him with bleary eyes and a tear-streaked face.  
  
"Well, there's some chairs by the entrance, let me take you there."  
  
"You're too kind - I'm really sorry for bursting into tears on you."  
  
"That's ok," he said politely, but thinking that he just wanted to get away as quickly as possible.  
  
Hermione, having picked up some lemon sorbet, had gathered everyone up at the checkout, but Draco was nowhere to be seen.  
  
"Isn't that just like him, running off at the first chance?" said Ron.  
  
"Well, he can't have gone far, he has no idea how to get around without magic," said Hermione. "I'll go look for him. The rest of you stay here, I'll be back in ten minutes." She left her basket with Ron, and started off in search of Draco. She went all around the supermarket, finding him nowhere, then, going to check outside, found him on the chairs in the entrance talking with a strange woman.  
  
"I've been looking for you everywhere, Draco! Where have you been?"  
  
"Well, I bumped into Mabel here, who's been having a terrible time recently, and she was in a bit of a state and needed someone to talk to, so I've been sitting here with her until she feels better," he said, looking a bit embarrassed.  
  
"Are you alright Mabel? My name's Hermione - can I help you?"  
  
"No, thank you. It's just - I found out only yesterday that my husband's being unfaithful and, well, I'm not over the shock. I bumped into your boyfriend and burst into tears on him - he was so kind and helpful. But I'll be alright now, you two continue your shopping."  
  
"Are you sure? You still look rather upset."  
  
"Well, I am, but it's going to take a long time before I'm going to be happy ever again. I'm alright for now though, and I'm going to visit my mother this afternoon and she'll take care of me. You two carry on, I'm not going to bother such a promising young couple any more with woeful tales of love gone wrong."  
  
They said goodbye to Mabel and headed on back to the others, quickly picking up Draco's shopping en route. Before they got there, though, Draco stopped Hermione and said:  
  
"Erm, Hermione, I'd rather that you didn't tell them what just happened back there."  
  
"Whyever not? That was the nicest thing I've ever seen you do!"  
  
"Well, it was pretty personal, and to be quite frank I don't think they'd believe it."  
  
"You don't want to ruin your bad-boy, couldn't-care-less reputation?"  
  
Draco shrugged.  
  
"Ok, I'll cover up for you - but it was nice to see that you can be good to people for a change. It makes me think better of you."  
  
"Thanks," Draco said, and turned away.  
  
When they got back to the checkout, Hermione was bombarded with questions about where she found Malfoy. Thinking quickly she answered:  
  
"Oh it wasn't anywhere spectacular - just eyeing up the top-shelf magazines at the newspaper stand."  
  
Ron burst into laughter and the other two girls giggled madly. Draco glared at Hermione, who raised an eyebrow at him and started unloading the food onto the checkout.  
  
After packing and paying, the company trooped off to the bus stop. Draco signed silently to Hermione to hang back a little.  
  
"That was really embarrassing, you know that?" he said, looking at her angrily.  
  
"Well yes, but then how could you have told Mabel that we were going out? That was just as embarrassing, Malfoy."  
  
"I did not! She just assumed that, all right?"  
  
"Oh. Well, I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions and embarrassing you, then."  
  
"Don't worry, Granger. It's not your fault that you can't keep your thoughts off me and sex." He smirked and walked on, leaving Hermione standing there, looking after him with her mouth open in astonishment. 


	4. Common Ground

Life on the Other SIde 4 - Common Ground.  
  
by Maenad  
  
Disclaimer: These aren't mine. Neither are the lyrics. NOTE: This is NOT a songfic.  
  
Author's note: I'm changing the rating, 'coz it's just gotten very dark indeed. Blame recent events (and events 60-odd years ago) not me.  
  
LIFE ON THE OTHER SIDE 4  
  
COMMON GROUND.  
  
  
The group ate their lunch back at Hermione's house and started talking about what they wanted to research for their essays when they got back to Hogwarts. Ron and Sophie had been intrigued by the microwave and Hermione hunted out some old physics textbooks for them to read. Maria wanted to know about Muggle medicine, so she got an old, dusty book of common illnesses and another book dealing with homeopathy and alternative medicines, which Hermione's father had bought for a laugh, but had eventually led him to try acupuncture when dealing with toothache. They had gone off to other rooms to start reading. Hermione was reading The Guardian, which she had picked up at the supermarket, in order to research contemporary politics, and Draco was looking at the Grangers' bookshelves in search of inspiration, picking out books, flicking through them, making sounds of denigration and putting them back without settling on anything. After half-an-hour of this Hermione looked up from her newspaper, looking annoyed.  
  
"Haven't you found anything yet, Malfoy?" she snapped.  
  
"Not if you don't count the Kama Sutra," he said, casually waving in front of her a book with two people doing naughty things on the cover. "I wonder what this is doing in your parents' bookcase? Never mind - care to help me with the practical research?"  
  
"Very funny," she snarled, folding up her paper and coming to stand next to him by the shelves. "What sort of subject are you after anyway?"  
  
"Something that won't put Muggles in a good light. Your parents are very nice, Hermione, but I can't believe all Muggles are all pleasant all the time. I'm not going to praise Muggles to the skies, you know." Looking at Hermione, who didn't look at all pleased, he continued. "For one thing, my father would be extremely angry if I did."  
  
Hermione was starting to get angry at Draco, who seemed that he couldn't give up his prejudices at Muggles in General, although his one-to-one conversation with Mabel proved that he could at least treat them with sympathy. But his last sentence made her think again. As he was saying it, something had slipped from behind his laconic exterior and for a second he actually looked... nervous? Hermione thought about what she knew of his father, Lucius. Harry had told her that he was among the Death-Eaters when he had faced Voldemort after the Triwizard Tournament, and the couple of times she saw him he had sneered at her. No, he didn't like Muggles at all. And the few times she'd seen him with Draco it was quite obvious that Draco was very subordinate to him. Seeing Draco's nervousness, she began to wonder what dort of father he really was, but decided not to mention it.   
  
Instead, she reached up to the books and pulled out a large book with "Holocaust" on the cover. Biting her lip, she gave it to him.  
  
"You heard of what the Dark wizard Grindelwald got up to in the 1940's? This is about what a group of Muggles, called Nazis, were doing to another group, called Jews, at the same time. I think that it shows the depths to which Muggles can sink in their treatment of one another."  
  
Hermione looked so upset while saying this that Draco started to ask her what was wrong. He stopped himself, though, fearing to show concern for a Mudblood. Hermione, however, had already picked up her paper and left the room. Shrugging, Draco sat down on one of the Grangers' comfortable armchairs and began to read.  
  
It wasn't long before he saw what Hermione had meant. Stories of brutal torture, horrendous concentration camps and mass killings sickened him, and when photographs of some of the survivors found when the Americans had liberated the camps appeared, he went into shock. These people didn't even look like humans anymore, but more like skeletons or zombies. The records of research on killing methods and "medical research" appalled him with their cold, scientific approach to inflicting suffering and pain.  
  
He decided to try and find out why this had all happened. Scanning the bookshelves again he found a history of Germany in the 1930's and 40's, and a biography of Hitler. With shock he read about Hitler's reasoning behind blaming the Jews for Germany's problems and the ease with which he convinced a large section of the German people to follow his ideas, and the Nuremberg laws and Kristallnacht that started off the whole horrible nightmare, and the Final Solution, the aim of which was to destroy every Jew in the world.  
  
The worst part of the whole thing, though, was that even though he read the books with an unbelieving horror, he recognised in the discrimination of the Jews, and the ideas and attitudes that the Nazis held towards them, a reflection of the ideas and attitudes that he, his father, and his father's friends held towards Muggles. Worse still, a small, cold part of him regarded the idea of the Final Solution as nothing worse than efficient and effective.  
  
Appalled at his conclusions, he put the books on a nearby table and went to se Hermione.  
  
  
  
Ron and Sophie were reading through the physics textbooks in the room Ron was sharing with Draco. When Hermione entered they were lying on their stomachs in the middle of the room, with their heads together, looking at a large diagram of an atom.  
  
"So electrons are negative, protons are positive and neutrons are neutral, with no charge," Ron was saying.  
  
"And the number of electrons equals the number of protons in a stable atom," added Sophie.  
  
"How are you two doing?" asked Hermione. Ron and Sophie jumped up on hearing her voice and moved quickly away from each other. Sophie was blushing furiously and Ron was red to the roots of his hair, which now looked pale in comparison. Hermione studiously ignored this, however, and looked at the books that were scattered over the room. "Find anything interesting?" she asked.  
  
"Umm, yeah, well, the size of the atoms explains how electrical things can work with very thin wires," said Ron.  
  
"But I can't understand how Muggles know that they exist if they are so small," said Sophie.  
  
"Well, I think what happened was that some Greek philosopher thought that if you cut something in half, and then in half again, and kept going, you would eventually come up with something that couldn't be halved and that something was an atom; and poeple just built on that idea. And then, even if you can't see something, it doesn't mean that it doesn't exist," Hermione replied, looking at a loss.  
  
"But you don't know for sure?" Ron pressed.  
  
"Muggles start learning this stuff when they are about eleven, but I went to Hogwarts instead," she replied.  
  
"Oh my goodness! Something that Hermione doesn't know!" squealed Sophie.  
  
"Well, my parents tried to make me learn Muggle subjects when I went home during the holidays, but on top of my homework and trying to learn all about magic that I could it was just too much, and frankly not all that interesting either. Give me Arithmancy over Arithmetic any day!" she laughed.  
  
"Fair enough Hermione, but can you help us understand this?" Ron asked, pointing to a section in the book. Hermione agreed, and spent about an hour puzzling through her brother's old books, with Ron and Sophie sneaking laughing glances at each other every time Hermione was stumped.  
  
Finally Hermione had had enough, and realised that she still had her newspaper to read, so she made her excuses and left. As she shut the door she noticed Ron move to sit close to Sophie again.  
  
She went to her room, put a CD on and started to read her newspaper, but she couldn't concentrate. Bringing up the subject of the Holocaust to Draco had raised some unpleasant memories, and seeing Ron and Sophie giggling and whispering to each other made her feel a little depressed and left out. She lay back on her bed, folded her newspaper and laid it to one side, closed her eyes and let the melancholy sound of Radiohead wash over her.  
  
  
  
Draco found Hermione in her room, lying on her bed, with the newspaper folded by her side. Muggle music was emerging from a piece of electrical equipment on her desk. Slow, depressing, and with uncomfortable words sung by a surreal voice filled with hate and despair, it suited his mood perfectly. Hermione hadn't heard him come in, but she wasn't asleep as her hand was marking the beat and her lips were moving in time with the singer's words. Draco reached out and touched her shoulder, and she jumped up and jerked away. Seeing Draco, she tensed.  
  
"What is it?" she asked.  
  
"I read the book," he said, and sat down cross-legged by the bed, looking down, with his hair covering his eyes.  
  
"And?" she said, turning onto her side and propping her head up with one hand.  
  
"I never realised that hatred could be so ugly," he said softly.  
  
"Yes," she replied. "But... I never thought you'd see it that way."  
  
"How did you think I'd see it?" he asked, curious.  
  
"Only as you'd said - as something that would make Muggles look bad. Easily influenced, only thinly civilised, capable of outbursts of horrifying violence..." she tailed off.  
  
"Hermione..." he started, then stopped, thought, and started again. "You're one of Potter's best friends, so I assume you know that my father is a Death Eater." She nodded. "Well, I can use all this to write something that will make it look like I think that way - and I will have to. My father... has a certain amount of control over me." She nodded again, but said nothing. "But I want at least you to know that that is not everything that I learned. Muggles are susceptible to hate, violence and all the rest of it, but so are wizards. It isn't anything we can act superior about. And... I won't let my father or anyone else create another Holocaust if I can help it." He fell silent.  
  
"Draco, I have something I want to tell you, but it's very uncomfortable. Please bear with me?" Hermione said.  
  
Draco looked up. "Go on," he said. "I'm listening."  
  
She took a deep breath. "My mother's father was a German, and was a member of the S.S. in the war. He served for a while in Belsen, one of the death camps, and took part in much of the killing. But near the end of the war he was called back to Berlin and was there when it fell. A few years later he came to Britain , as he spoke good English, and eventually married my grandmother. She knew nothing of his past, and he kept it secret from everyone until he died a few years ago, when some papers were found in his attic that told the whole story." She looked directly at him. "My point is that my mother, my brothers and myself are descendants of a mass-murderer, and this is something I will have to live with all my life. But just because my grandfather did some evil things, that doesn't mean that I am evil as well. And neither are you."  
  
Draco had listened to her in silence, watching her struggle to tell her story, which was obviously very painful for her. For the first time he felt something linking him to her in a way he had never expected. Her eyes were filled with tears, although she refused to let them fall, and her breath was jerky and irregular. Watching her fighting to control herself in front of him, something inside him suddenly shifted and he found himself wanting to comfort her. She was someone who could, albeit in a small way, empathize with him. He reached out and touched her hair, then leaned forward and kissed her cheek. Then, habit taking over, he got up and strode out of the room.  
  
  
-----------------------------------------  
  
That's it sir,   
You're leaving,  
The crackle  
Of pigskin,  
The dust and  
The screaming,  
The yuppies networking,  
The panic,   
The vomit,  
The panic,  
The vomit,  
God loves his children,  
God loves his children, yeah.  
  
(Words from Paranoid Android by Radiohead).  
  



End file.
